Nellie McClung

Nellie Letitia McClung (20 October 1873-1 September 1951) was a Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 18 July 1921 to 28 June 1926, representing Edmonton. She was a Liberal Party of Canada member, and she was also a leader of the suffragette movement in Canada.

Biography
Nellie Letitia Mooney was born in Chatsworth, Ontario in 1873, and she was a schoolteacher until her marriage in 1896. She became active in the Woman's Christian Temperance Union, and in 1908 published her best-selling novel, Sowing Seeds with Danny. She moved to Winnipeg in 1911, where she became active in the women's rights movement, and continued her activities upon moving to Edmonton. As a campaigner for women's suffrage and greater social equality for women, she spoke widely throughout Canada, the United States, and Britain. Her speeches were collected in In Times Like These in 1915. She entered the Alberta Legislative Assembly in 1921 as a member of the Liberal Party of Canada. In 1929, she was instrumental in the successful campaign to allow women to sit in the Canadian Senate. She moved to Vancouver Island in 1933, where she wrote part of her autobiography, Clearing in the West: My Own Story, as well as short stories. She became a member of the Canadian Authors Association and sat on the first board of governors of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. She was often criticized for her attachment to traditional notions of the family and her conservatism on issues such as temeprance. However, it was perhaps precisely these values which formed the basis of her appeal, as they gave her a common language with her audiences, convincing them that women's rights would not lead to radical social and political transformations. She died in Victoria, British Columbia in 1951.